“Oh my. It’s the Allen couple.”

“Didn’t they leave earlier?”

“Seems they’ve returned with the husband. How unusual.”

Murmurs spread slowly from the entrance of the hall.

“I heard they delayed attending due to some business. It must have been something truly urgent.”

Whatever words were thrown around, they were useless in front of Sili. The noble businessmen suddenly all became busy.

“Well then, I’ll go have a chat for a moment.”

“Let’s go together.”

Men who had been drinking all over the party approached to greet Edward.

They said with smiling faces, pretending to be quite pleased:

“Isn’t this the famous engineer, Mr. Allen!”

“It’s the first time seeing the couple together at a party.”

To their words, Edward pulled Louisa’s hand towards him as if it were nothing and replied.

“I’m afraid I’ve been a bit busy lately, to my wife’s disappointment.”

“What could keep you so occupied?”

Someone asked with a hearty laugh. Edward responded bluntly, as if it were obvious.

“Read the newspapers. They’re always full of stories about me.”

At his joke-like truth, people laughed awkwardly, trying to hide their discomfort.

Louisa was a bit, no, quite surprised, as it was her first time seeing her husband interact with people as the head of Allen Company.

She knew he was a person with high self-esteem, but she didn’t know it was to this extent.

“Ha ha, that’s right. With that level of fame, it’s not strange to be so busy. Seems you had some business today as well.”

“There was a rat, you see. I was a bit late catching it.”

Louisa, who had been listening to his conversation, was truly shocked this time and pulled on his arm. As Edward looked down, Louisa slightly grabbed his shoulder and whispered.

“Ed. Even if they’re speechless animals, calling them rats?”

“They’re harmful creatures. How dare they covet what people eat.”

It was quite an explicit expression. But the nobles, not wanting to upset Edward, laughed it off even at that.

“Well, that’s true. Having such creatures running around isn’t good for your wife either. Isn’t that right?”

“Indeed. When you first see the tail, you should exterminate them all at once.”

However, there was one noble who couldn’t hide his uncomfortable expression, as if their conversation was unsettling.

Westwood passed by them and threw in a comment.

“If there are rats, perhaps you should pay more attention to the hygiene of your laboratory, Allen.”

“I was just thinking about keeping some cats. The ones good at hunting.”

Westwood glanced at him and laughed loudly.

“Haha, I just hope they don’t bite your hand.”

But despite his hearty laugh, Westwood’s lips were tightly pressed as he passed by them.

Edward didn’t miss this and watched him closely.

“Ed?”

Louisa called him.

“It’s nothing. Well then, we have many places to show our faces.”

He just threw out a brief notice and passed by the nobles who had gathered to see him.

As the surprised Louisa looked back, Edward spoke quietly.

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

“But still…”

“You don’t need to worry about those people.”

Although Louisa thought differently from him, she didn’t have time to worry about those they left behind, as her husband said.

After just a few steps, people approached and started saying various things.

“Mrs. Allen. Are you alright now?”

“We were so surprised earlier. Fortunately, it seems you had a spare dress.”

“That’s right. My, whoever did that must have such a thick face. Don’t you think?”

Behind the women who approached like this were their husbands.

Confirming this, Louisa just smiled as usual.

“Fortunately, my husband had prepared something. I’m fine.”

But soon, different murmurs began to be heard from behind.

Anthony Lawrence Wincott. It was the arrival of the legitimate heir to the current Wincott royal family.

Anthony spoke with great surprise.

“Well, who do we have here. If it isn’t Edward Allen with his face gilded!”

He approached them and said.

“I heard it’s as rare as catching a star from the sky to see that face, I must be very lucky today.”

It was clearly a mocking remark to anyone who heard it. Edward, feeling annoyed, retorted.

“That effort turns into money, and money becomes national power, Your Highness. As a prince of a country, you should know that well.”

“Of course. And not just that. I also know well that when it comes to protecting the person by your side, a single act of sincerity can be more effective than all that money.”

At Anthony’s words, Edward’s face stiffened. It was true and he had nothing to say, but there was no reason to be pointed out by this prince.

As he was about to rebut with a word, something pulled him from below his shoulder.

Looking down, he saw his wife shaking her head.

Louisa, taking advantage of Edward’s hesitation, stepped forward and said.

“Your Highness. My husband seems tired, so we’re thinking of getting some fresh air for a moment.”

“That would be good. Have a nice time together.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

Louisa curtsied gracefully, lifting her skirt. Seeing her, Edward reluctantly nodded his head and moved in the direction Louisa was leading.

As they disappeared onto the terrace, pulling aside the thick velvet curtains set up for private conversations, someone in the vicinity exclaimed.

“My, how daring.”

“You came along. Why are you like this?”

Edward said grumpily. Yet, he was observing Louisa’s expression.

After confirming that the curtain was completely closed, Louisa exhaled deeply and said.

“Goodness, Ed. How can you be so combative?”

“Me?”

Edward asked back as if he had heard something unexpected.

“Yes. How could you be so rude even to His Highness the Prince?”

“The prince crossed the line first.”

Good heavens. ‘The prince’, he says.

Louisa was surprised that there were still more surprising aspects to her husband.

It seemed that pointing it out wouldn’t have much effect on her husband. Louisa gave up on criticizing his behavior and instead started to persuade him.

“He’s always been concerned about me as a friend. Even today, he advised us to leave early rather than this…”

Louisa’s words trailed off. She realized that continuing would be speaking ill of Edward.

Edward also immediately understood what the unfinished words meant. He said nothing and just watched his wife’s expression intently.

In the silence, their eyes met.

Louisa was the first to laugh.

“Pfft.”

It was a light laugh. At his wife’s smile, the tension in Edward’s body relaxed.

“You’re doing so well on your own that it’s almost laughable how worried I was. Really.”

Louisa, now seeming a bit more relaxed, leaned on the terrace railing with both arms.

At his wife’s reaction, Edward couldn’t tell if he was being scolded or praised.

After standing blankly for a moment, he blurted out anything.

“That’s right. I do well on my own. He was rude first, so that’s why I responded like that. Your husband has the ability to do so, you know.”

“That’s right. You do have that ability.”

I worried for nothing. Louisa said with a smile.

She spoke with a face full of laughter, as if finding the earlier situation amusing belatedly.

“Still, thanks to that, I saw such expressions on people’s faces for the first time.”

But Edward still couldn’t understand what ‘such expressions’ his wife was talking about. Was she referring to the frowning looks as if they had seen something they shouldn’t have?

“Thank you. For coming with me today like this.”

“You sure have a lot to be thankful for.”

“Of course. Just coming with me once like this is something to be thankful for. You’re different from me, you know.”

What was different?

Edward wanted to ask that. But he didn’t have the courage to hear the answer.

So he decided to do what he could.

“If we’re done talking, let’s go out.”

“Where to?”

“Outside. We still have a long way to go to make a full round.”

At his words, Louisa burst into laughter this time.

“Goodness, Ed, are you really thinking of making a full round?”

“That’s how everyone in the neighborhood will see.”

“It’s alright,” she said, waving her hand.

“Anyone who needed to see has probably already seen, and since we came into the terrace like this, the gossips will be even more excited to talk.”

“Ah. The terrace.”

Edward finally clapped his palm.

Then he approached her casually and said.

“What are people gossiping about? Is it what I think it is?”

His hand wrapped around Louisa’s waist.

However, Louisa slapped the back of his hand on her waist and said.

“What are you doing, Ed?”

“What am I doing? I’m holding my wife.”

“Goodness, what are you saying outside?”

“Why? Is there a problem between a married couple?”

“Ed.”

Louisa glared at him. But Edward avoided her gaze and turned to the opposite side, asking once again.

“How about it? Want to start a real rumor?”

“Edward!”

Slap.

In the end, he got scolded by Louisa.

The Allen couple, who had given many surprises in various ways, left the party hall saying they would return home before the day changed.

Emily Ernst, who was out on the terrace, stared blankly at the two departing for home with her chin resting on the railing.

“Reni, I have something to ask.”

“Okay, ask away. Oh, the aroma of this wine is really nice.”

Reina Scott, who was the same age as her, twirled the wine glass around, savoring the aroma.

Emily, keeping her gaze on the backs of the departing couple, asked.

“If someone seems to be eyeing what you thought was yours. What do you do then?”

“Are you talking about dresses? Jewels?”

“Something similar.”

At her words, Reina Scott took a sip of wine and said.

“You should add a premium and take it away so they can’t even think of buying it. Or crush their intention to buy what you were planning to get in the first place. Make them give up on their own.”

That’s right, as I thought.

Emily nodded.

Reina Scott, who was taking small sips of wine and constantly letting out exclamations, said.

“By the way, today was really something unusual, wasn’t it? I never thought I’d see that couple attending together.”

“Yeah, me neither.”

“Unlike the rumors, it seems the husband is quite attached to her. Did you see earlier? He couldn’t resist when his wife said to leave.”

“…Well, we don’t know if that’s really the case.”

When Emily didn’t agree with her words, Reina Scott glanced at her slightly. Then she quickly agreed with Emily’s words.

“Well, believing only what you see can also lead to being foolish.”

“That’s right. We can’t know until we confirm it ourselves.”

Emily’s gaze remained fixed on the backs of the two departing people.